Can a Traffic Citation Be Changed After It is Written

[Lindy Barbara Mcc]

My question involves traffic court in the State of: Arkansas

I was involved in an accident, they cited me for running a stop sign and no proof of insurance, well I have insurance and I was really shooken up, they didnt give me time to look for my paperwork, they were concerned about clearing the road, and I know I stopped, well I got the copy of the report and it sais I did stop and that I got cited for "Failure to yield" and no proof of insurance, I pled not guilty and trial has been set. Can they change the ticket? This happened well over a month ago and court is more than a month from now

[That Guy]

Please post the code sections and description of the violations from the citation and copy the code sections and descriptions of the violations from the police report.

Of course "running a stop sign" can essentially mean "failing to yield the right of way"; it really isn't that big of a stretch!

In fact, here, they are even defined together under the same section in the Arkansas code:

A.C.A. § 27-51-601 (2012),

Title 27 Transportation,

Subtitle 4. Motor Vehicular Traffic

Chapter 51 Operation Of Vehicles -- Rules Of The Road

Subchapter 6 -- Stops and Yielding

27-51-601. Stop signs and yield signs.

(a) Preferential right-of-way at an intersection may be indicated by stop signs or yield signs as authorized by law.

(b) Every stop sign and every yield sign shall be erected as near as practicable to the nearest line of the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection or, if there is no crosswalk, then as near as practicable to the nearest line of the intersection roadway.

(c)

(1) Every stop sign shall bear the word "STOP" in letters not less than eight inches (8'') in height.

(2) Every yield sign shall bear the word "YIELD" in letters not less than seven inches (7'') in height.

(3) Every stop sign and every yield sign shall at nighttime be rendered luminous by internal illumination or by a floodlight projected on the face of the sign or by efficient reflecting elements in the face of the sign.

(d) Except when directed to proceed by a police officer or traffic control signal, every driver of a vehicle and every operator of a streetcar approaching a stop intersection indicated by a stop sign shall stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection. In the event there is no crosswalk, the driver or operator shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but if none, then at the point nearest the intersecting roadway where the driver has a view of approaching traffic on the intersecting roadway before entering the intersection.

(e) The driver of a vehicle approaching a yield sign, if required for safety to stop, shall stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection. In the event there is no crosswalk, the driver shall stop at a clearly marked stop line, but if none, then at the point nearest the intersecting roadway where the driver has a view of approaching traffic on the intersecting roadway.

[Lindy Barbara Mcc]

The thing is, on the ticket there are 2 separate boxes boxes aka violations one has a place for running a stop sign and the other is failure to yield so shouldnt this make a difference? Also one witness who came to me to see if I was OK said the other person who was coming the other way who had no stop sign was flying down the road, but she didnt fill out a witness statement, should I post an ad to see if she can be a witness on my court date, The other person I know was goin way faster than the speed limit, I was almost in the middle of the road crossing and it was like that person dropped out of the sky and when we collided the other car spun in a lot of circles and skidded down the road landing in a ditch, if goin the proper speed limit that shouldnt have happended.

As for the proof of insurance, what can be done there?

[That Guy]

The thing is, on the ticket there are 2 separate boxes boxes aka violations one has a place for running a stop sign and the other is failure to yield so shouldnt this make a difference?

Its possible but without knowing the code section numbers and decriptioons I asked for in my last post, "who knows" is the best answer!

In theory, you could get charged with both, failing to stop and failing to yield!

Also one witness who came to me to see if I was OK said the other person who was coming the other way who had no stop sign was flying down the road, but she didnt fill out a witness statement, should I post an ad to see if she can be a witness on my court date, The other person I know was goin way faster than the speed limit

Your witness could certainly help however, the likelihood that he can offer a reliable estimate of the other driver's speed as in (a number), his testimony isn't likely to benefit you by much especially considering the fact that speed, does not necessarily mean the other driver loses his right of way.

I was almost in the middle of the road crossing and it was like that person dropped out of the sky and when we collided the other car spun in a lot of circles and skidded down the road landing in a ditch, if goin the proper speed limit that shouldnt have happended.

Conceivably, he would have been MUCH MORE better off is if you did not fail to stop and/or fail to yield or both and an accident not happening.

As for the proof of insurance, what can be done there?

Don't know the code section so I don't know how it would be handled by the court!

[Lindy Barbara Mcc]

Im a little lost, how do i find the codes? and the witness who filled out the report clearly stated I did stop, I tried my very best to avoid this person like I said, I stopped looked both ways and as I was crossing the road looked both ways when i looked one way then the next that person seemed to me like they dropped out of the sky

[That Guy]

Im a little lost, how do i find the codes? and the witness who filled out the report clearly stated I did stop, I tried my very best to avoid this person like I said, I stopped looked both ways and as I was crossing the road looked both ways when i looked one way then the next that person seemed to me like they dropped out of the sky

The codes and code descriptions are similar to what you see in the code section I posted up top.

Example"27-51-601. Stop signs and yield signs" would yield "27-51-601" as the code section (number) and "Stop signs and yield signs" would be the "description"!

I cannot refute whether you stopped or not, and it is not my place nor am I attempting to decide if you did or not; I don't even know what visibility range you had from your position at the stop sign, or whether you should have seen him regardless of his speed and/or distance. But even with all those variables and unknown details, one thing is for sure, the chances that "he dropped out of the sky" are pretty slim, wouldn't you agree?

And so clearly, the fact that an accident resulted, and since two cars cannot occupy the same space at the same time, we are left with very little doubt that someone encroached on the other's space. Whether that was due to a quick and possibly questionable stop or inattention, or a slow start, or... the possibilities are endless. And yet the end conclusion still remains that this other vehicle had the right of way, meaning he had the -reasonable but full- use and control of all lanes of travel in the direction he was travelling, all while you, by virtue of your starting location where you entered this roadway, had the legal obligation to allow him the use of the roadway by not getting in his way until he is past the point where you could interfere with his movement!

You had a legal obligation to stop at the entrance to the intersection; to make sure that there was no approaching traffic that was close enough where your entry into the intersection and on to the roadway would interfere with their passing through. The other driver, on the other hand did not have an obligation to stop and let you on.

It is true that he collided with you, it is possible that he was speeding, and yet based on the description you provided, there could be no doubt that you should not have been in that space where the accident occurred at the time that it did occur. A conclusion that is clearly costly to you, but denying it is not likely to change the outcome.

Accidents do happen and even if it ends up being our fault, versus the other party's, we are all human, we all make mistakes and we all have accidents. The fact you had one does not reflect on who you are as a person!